Theological Foundations Research Articles

Whatever Happened to the Canaanites? Principles of a Christian Ethic of Mass Immigration

This article aims to articulate a set of general principles of a Christian ethic of mass immigration. Toward this end, it considers: biblical and theological grounds for cosmopolitanism (and ‘open borders’); biblical and theological caveats against cosmopolitanism; elements of a Christian ethic of the treatment of near and distant neighbours; what Francisco de Vitoria’s ‘On the American Indians’ has to contribute; what lessons should be learned from the history of European colonialism; and the nature of mass immigration into twenty-first-century Europe and the problems it entails. The article concludes with six principles: relevant empirical data should be mastered before developing a judgement; concerns about mass immigration should not be dismissed out of hand as ‘racist’; care of the alien may take a variety of forms, not only that of granting asylum; illegal economic immigrants should normally be returned home; compassion should look in several directions—not only at the migrant, but also at the working-class competitor for jobs and services, and at members of government burdened with the responsibility of making hard decisions; and the Christian is obliged to exercise, not only compassion, but justice and prudence.

Aquinas on Evil and the Will: A response to Mackie

AbstractThis article argues that, without being reducible to a version of the Free Will Defence, Aquinas' theodicy and philosophical theology can offer contemporary versions of the Free Will Defence stronger metaphysical and theological foundations from which a response to Mackie's compatibilistic challenge – probably the most serious challenge against this defence – can be derived. Mackie's challenge to the Free Will Defence is the argument that the possibility of evil is not a necessary condition for the existence of free will, for God – if He existed and was omnipotent, omnibenevolent and omniscient – could have and would have created rational and free agents such that they would always freely choose the good. I claim, following Aquinas' hylomorphic ontology, that the creation of such a will is logically impossible as it would require the creation of a will containing naturally and invariably the formality of the universal and perfect good, and so the creation of a will indistinct from God's, which is by nature uncreated.

God’s Omnipotence: A Literary Investigation

The omnipotence of God can be defined as the perfect ability of God to do all things that are consistent with the divine character. Open theists see God as one who is influenced as God interacts with human beings in time and space (temporally). Thus, for Open Theists, God is affected and influenced by the world. This paper revisits the historical, biblical and theological grounds for the doctrine of omnipotence with the aim of re-establishing the relevance of divine omnipotence. Using a literary investigation this article traces the developments of the doctrine of God’s power from the Early Church Fathers to the Reformers to establish whether the articulation of God’s power within Open Theism resonates with Orthodox Theology and Evangelicalism.

Capitalism and the Ecological Crisis: The Spirituality of Voluntary Sacrifice

Abstract This article seeks to consider the market fundamentalism inherent in global capitalism as the main cause and continual perpetuator of the climate crisis. Functioning in the market fundamentalism is the philosophical and theological grounds prevalent in the capitalistic system, such as desire, disconnectedness, anthropocentrism, individualism, and unilateral grace. This article analyzes some churches’ responses on climate change, especially the theological content concerning the economic system and its philosophy concerning the climate crisis. The call is made for the church to articulate a public theology that addresses the vexed relationship between the economic system and the climate crisis; there is an urgent need to embody the spirituality of voluntary sacrifice in order to challenge and provide an alternative to the underlying philosophical attitudes of the capitalist system for the planet’s sake.

Remembrances of Gurus Past: Reading the Smṛti Sthāna in the Sarangpur BAPS Swaminarayan Temple Complex

Abstract In the Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) tradition, the guru is satpuruṣa and Aksharbrahman, an already perfect devotee and the existential form in whom God, who is Parabrahman, is resident on earth. At death, the guru’s mortal body undergoes cremation but the eternal ontological category of Aksharbrahman is manifested in a successor in whom Bhagwan Swaminarayan (Parabrahman) is fully present. This article explores BAPS’s understanding of guru’s corporeality and divinity and the built forms that arise at the place of cremation, samādhi sthaḷa, to memorialise the Aksharbrahman guru. The memorial places, smṛti sthāna, are active material and devotional agents, tied to the theological foundations of BAPS Swaminarayan bhakti. As agentive devotional structures, these memorial sites act upon, visually define, and invite engagement with those who visit them. These dimensions of the material are inseparable from the guru’s role in the conceptualisation, location, and construction of BAPS smṛti sthāna. This article examines the material and devotional significances of two memorial places in the Sarangpur BAPS Swaminarayan temple complex in Gujarat, India. The argument is that smṛti sthāna are sites whose construction is materially tied to BAPS bhakti: these memorial places uphold the centrality of past gurus’ and the present guru’s ontological position and materialise the vital singularity of the Aksharbrahman category through whom devotees can experience the continuing presence of the guru lineage and Bhagwan Swaminarayan.1

Divine Justice and the Issue of Evil in Sahifa Al-Sajjadiyya

The issue of "divine justice", which is the one of the most important doctrinal principles and a characteristic of the theological religions such Shiite and Mu'tazilite, in fact is one of the Perfect Attributes of Allah and due to its indescribable importance, it has a special place in doctrinal discussions. On the other hand, the existence of evils and calamities, poverty and deprivation, oppression and disease and moral corruption, and even the manner of punishment in the hereafter, always raises doubts in the human mind and calls into question Allah's justice. The generality of such suspicions has led Islamic thinkers to solve these problems in defense of divine justice. In this regard, the present study seeks to use the words of the fourth Shiite Imam in the divine invocations of the complete Sahifa Al_ Sajjadiyya, to achieve the theological foundations to solve some evil doubts in the realm of creation and the human world. The method of collecting materials in this research is library and the research method is "descriptive -analytical". After investigations, it became clear that from Imam Sajjad's point of view, neglecting and inclining the soul to the world and other than Allah, and consequently being caught in the trap of the devil and carnal soul, and contamination with sin and transgression, is the real evil. According to him, the divine test and punishment and return to the truth, the flourishing of talents and the appreciation of blessings are the benefits of evil and suffering. also meanings such as: the inherent richness of the Almighty, the bestowal of goodness and abundant blessings, the guidance of the servants to the good religion and the punishment of the same action in the prayers of Imam (A.S), all three types of genetic justice, legislative justice and criminal justice can be proved.

Christian Unity in the Middle East

AbstractThe Orthodox Metropolitan of Mount Lebanon, George Khodr, born in 1923, has played an important role in ecumenism and the ecumenical movement since the 1st Assembly of the World Council of Churches (WCC) in Amsterdam in 1948, where he was made a member of the WCC youth commission. He is particularly remembered for his keynote address to the WCC central committee meeting in Addis Ababa in 1971 on “Christianity in a Pluralistic World: The Economy of the Holy Spirit,” at a time when the WCC was embarking on its programme of dialogue with peoples of living faiths and ideologies. This article explores the theological foundations of ecumenism in Khodr’s thought and theology, before turning to how he addresses the theological differences and the historical dilemmas that accompanied the history of the church and impaired East–West relations. In conclusion, the article argues that the model of “unity in diversity” as intended and conceived by Khodr best meets the conditions, the challenges, and the requirements for ecumenism in the contemporary Middle East.

Contemporary Cosmology is Irrelevant to Classical Theistic Christian Eschatology

ABSTRACT Some are of the opinion that cosmological predictions regarding the future of the physical universe contradict or challenge the Christian eschatological hope for a “new heavens and new earth” (2 Pet. 3:13). The present essay argues that cosmological science is irrelevant to classical theistic Christian eschatology on two grounds. First, cosmology does not substantially inform Christian eschatology, which already affirmed the demise of the cosmos on theological grounds. Second, cosmology does not challenge eschatology if a classical theistic conception of God and its corollary doctrines of creatio ex nihilo and divine conservation and concurrence are admitted.

Ибн Синаның логикалық ілімі және силлогизміндегі кейбір ерекшеліктер

It is well known that Greek philosophy was at the center of attention of medieval thinkers, including Muslims. The latter were particularly interested in the teachings of Plato and Aristotle. Science in the Caliphate from the very beginning of its emergence and development was associated with the translation of the scientific heritage of other peoples into Arabic. One of these sciences was logic. It satisfied the urgent need for a rationalistic methodology that organizes scientific thought, and was applied in a wide variety of areas of Arab culture. For the majority of Muslim scholars who have worked in various fields of science, logic has become one of the means of rational thinking: it was used by linguists, philosophers, theologians and even Islamic jurists. Some of them used it secretly and anonymously, because they feared criticism of the opponents of Greek logic from the Islamic apologists. The history of the development of Arab-Muslim logic can be subdivided in several stages. The first of them is the stage of translations of the ancient heritage. The second stage is associated with serious logical research. It starts with al-Farabi and ends with Ibn Sina. The logical research carried out during this period influenced the development of a number of other sciences, including linguistics, kalam and the foundations of legal theology (fiqh). At this stage, very large works combining various logical theories gleaned from antique era or from other sources were written. In an effort to bring logic closer to realities of Muslim life, Muslims have significantly updated logical science. Undoubtedly, with his works Ibn Sina gave a new impetus to the study of logic. This article considers the logical system, syllogistic of the scientist. That is, comparing some aspects of the logical systems of Ibn Sina and Aristotle, the differences of Sheikh ur Rice are emphasized. Ibn Sina also focused on the types of conditionally separating syllogisms in syllogistics. According to academic Dinorshoev, no one had studied this kind of syllogism so thoroughly before Ibn Sina

Peran Pelayanan Penggembalaan untuk Menuntun Pertumbuhan Spiritual Siswa dalam Pendidikan Kristen [The Role of Shepherding Ministry in Directing the Spiritual Growth of Students in Christian Education

Christian education is Christ-centered and guides students to experience spiritual growth to become more Christ like, relate to God, and understand their responsibilities as believers throughout their lives. This ministry of shepherding has very important role because every believer still struggles with sin, and still has the possibility to sin, failing to obey God's will, even though he has not lost his faith in Christ. Christian teachers can guide students in these process of spiritual growth in thinking, feeling, and action (will). This article aims to provide theological foundation on the spiritual growth of believers in the Christian education community through pastoral ministry carried out by teachers. The writing of this article uses descriptive qualitative methods, by examining various phenomena that occur in the context of Christian schools through various relevant literature. The various data were analyzed based on the principles of the Bible as the main source, and literature on theology and other Christian education as secondary resources. The conclusion of this article proves that ministry of shepherding in Christian schools has very significant impact on the process of students' spiritual growth, especially thinking, feeling, and action, to become more Christ like.

Islamic Populism in Turkey

In the last two decades, multiple Islamic parties have become incumbent parties and/or joined coalition governments. Such a development brought debate as to whether these parties could moderate into democratic actors à la Christian Democratic Parties in Western Europe, or whether they were aiming at the formation of an Islamist state and society through electoral means. What remains relatively unaddressed in the literature, however, is to what degree Islamic parties truly derive their socio-political agenda from Islam. Hence, this paper will ask, how do Islamic parties utilize Islam? To answer this question, this paper will use a single case-study approach to test and to rethink Islamic political parties and what is “Islamic” about them in the Turkish case. This paper will study the Turkish case because the country’s incumbent party, the Justice and Development Party (JDP), has been governing Turkey since 2002, making the Party the longest ruling Islamic party still in power. Based on the literature on populism, this paper will argue that the way the JDP utilized Islam can be characterized as populism flavored by religion that is based on (i) a thin theological foundation, (ii) a majoritarian rather than a multivocal interpretation of Islam, and (iii) a Muslim unity rhetoric.

Re-engaging Spiritual Formation in Online Theological Education

In the recent literature on formation in online theological education, a number of thematic strands can be delineated: the apologetic, didactic, pedagogical, empirical, and geographical strands. However, apart from the early apologetic stage of the discussion theological reflection plays a minor role in the literature. In this article, I argue that theology plays a limited and superficial role in contemporary writings about formation in online theological education. Yet, spiritual formation in online theological education needs theological grounding. Given the accelerated shift to forms of online education across the world, such theological grounding is an urgent task. In this renewed theological engagement, three areas especially call for sustained attention: (1) the multi-faceted nature of spiritual formation; (2) the question of agency in spiritual formation and the consequences for the theological curriculum; and (3) engagement with theological traditions that offer ample material to guide our contemporary thinking about spiritual formation.

Jesus and the Church: The Foundation of the Church in the New Testament and Modern Theology Paul Avis T&T Clark, London, 2020, Theological Foundations of the Christian Church 1, xiv + 235 pp, (paperback £28.99) ISBN: 978-0-5676-9749-3

Jesus and the Church: The Foundation of the Church in the New Testament and Modern Theology Paul Avis T&T Clark, London, 2020, Theological Foundations of the Christian Church 1, xiv + 235 pp, (paperback £28.99) ISBN: 978-0-5676-9749-3 - Volume 23 Issue 3

Theological foundations of the political power ontology

The article is devoted to the study of the normative and theological foundations of political power origin and belongs to the field of political theology research. Despite the narrow field of research, the work is devoted to the study of a separate aspect of social life as a whole. The study of the theological foundations of political power was carried out within the framework of the neoinstitutional methodological paradigm, taking into account the data of hermeneutic analysis, which is an applied aspect of the work. Political power is considered by the authors in the framework of a broader aspect - the ontology of the social, as part of the fundamental layer of being. The authors, within the framework of the theological paradigm, considered the main ontological concepts of the political, analyzed the correlation of key political concepts - "power", "authority", and "sovereign". Various positions on understanding the essence of political power, as well as on the origin of this phenomenon in the historical and theological key are considered, the points of view of both domestic and foreign experts are studied.

Ecology as a New Foundation for Natural Theology

The erosion of metaphysics that began in Modernity has led to the discredit of the whole project of natural theology as a means to reach God, establish the classical divine attributes, and account for divine action. After the deconstruction of classical metaphysics propelled by thinkers associated with the Protestant tradition and by philosophers affiliated with the Nietzschean critique, it may appear that only an apophatic approach to God would then be possible. However, the attempt to establish a consensual foundation for the theological discourse has not lost its relevance. In this sense, the attempts to revitalize natural theology are most welcome. It would be naive, however, to think that approaches to natural theology based on classical metaphysics will easily gather consensus. This will not happen. The departing point for a renewed and credible approach to natural theology cannot be the theoretical universal reason associated with Modernity, which is no longer acknowledged as a common ground. As such, a viable approach to natural theology has to find a new consensual starting point. The goal of this article is to argue that the emergence of a new ecological urgency and sensibility, which nowadays gather a high degree of consensus, offers an opportunity for the renewal of natural theology. It is our aim: (i) to show the extent to which God grounds the intrinsic value of nature, which, as such, deserves respect, and (ii) to suggest that the reverence for nature may naturally lead contemporary human beings to God.

Art and Indiscernibility: Arthur C. Danto and the Dynamics of Analytic Philosophy

Arthur C. Danto was one of the most influential and prolific philosophers of art of the second half of the twentieth century. More particularly, his encounter with the art of Andy Warhol in 1964 became a crucial moment that would catapult his lifelong attempt to spell out the theoretical conditions of contemporary art, and the implications those conditions held for art history and criticism. In this article, however, I show that Danto was in fact primed for his encounter with Warhol by the newly emerging identity of Anglo-American analytic philosophy at mid-century. Using unpublished archival material, I show that Danto's fundamental insights in his first two major essays in the philosophy of art, “The Artworld” (1964) and “Artworks and Real Things” (1973), were in place at least two years before his chance meeting with Warhol's artwork. In making this more modest historical claim, however, I argue that Danto was part of a broader generation of philosophers who were attempting to work through some of the fundamental problems raised by the naturalist tradition of American thought since the late nineteenth century, problems that became central to the emerging identity of analytic philosophy in its early stages. Among the most pressing of these problems was how values functioned in a naturalistic universe absent theological or metaphysical grounding. Drawing from this philosophical space, Danto's account of art deeply influenced the direction of Anglo-American philosophy of art during the second half of the twentieth century. In the process, he became one of the most significant theorists of contemporary art in the English-speaking world.

К ВОПРОСУ ОБ ИССЛЕДОВАНИИ ПОДЗЕМНОЙ АРХИТЕКТУРЫ ХРИСТИАНСТВА

Underground architecture, spiritually and historically connected with Christianity, is of undoubted interest for research. This trend in architecture forms a number of distinctive typological groups. objects associated with Christian shrines dating back to the first centuries of the new era are among them. Underground architecture includes individual cave temples, martyrias, large monastic complexes, objects that combine secular and liturgical orientation. Crypts and temple subfloors correspond to the subject under consideration. Despite the evidence of significant spiritual, construction and technological limitations, there is considerable freedom in the layout of liturgical spaces in the architecture of underground churches. Many objects belonging to the pre-iconoclastic period or to the synodal period of the Russian Church are compositional solutions and their ideological and symbolic justifications that are not found in aboveground churches. Combining the typological groups of the underground architecture of Christianity into a holistic study seems fruitful for understanding the origins and developing the principles of the development of a unique and little-known component of temple architecture. In this article, authors substantiate the relevance of a comprehensive analysis of the underground architecture of Christianity. Authors have determined the purpose of the study – the study of theoretical and theological foundations and the development of a methodology for the modern development of the tradition of underground architecture of Christianity. The purpose of our work is structured into logically related groups of local tasks. The research methodology is based on a theological approach that justifies architectural and compositional features based on historical, theological and practical liturgical positions.

Concept of Mental Education: A Perspective of Ibn Qayyim Al-Jawziyyah

Man consists of two elements, namely body and spirit, so that human beings are jasiman and ruhiyah at once. Hummans are also part of one element of the elements that exist in an educational process. Three element include the soul, the mind, the heart, and the human body. Humman and education, can not be separated from each other. Both are an interconnected entity, human as the perpetrator and education as a syistem in the process to achieve the goal of education itself. Mental health education requires alignment and harmony in various stages and sectors as well as attention to the three elements that exist in the human self that is the physical element (psychomotor) which includes body building, skill (skill) and sexual education, the spiritual element (affective) which includes the formation of faith, and iradah (the will), the element of reason (cognitive) which includes the coaching of intelligence and the provision of knowledge. The purpose of writing this research is to know and analyze thoughts about the concept of life education perspective Ibn Qayyim al-Jauziyyah. Soul education is considered successful, if one's soul has reached the degree of nafs muthmainnah, which has three main characteristics that mutually reinforce one another, namely; (1) a faithful soul to God, (2) a patient soul, (3) a soul that is self-serving to Allah (tawakal). Through the process of mental education which includes: the foundation of theology, the purpose of mental education, integrated curriculum / manhaj at-takamul, appropriate methods and applicable according to its stages, such as: takhliyah stages, tahliyah stages, muhasabah an-nafs, dzikrullah, and tahqiq 'ubudiyah. So that from the process will give birth ihsan attitude, and will increase the piety in worship, both related to God and those related to humans and the surrounding natural environment. Because, the essence of ihsan attitude itself is upholding 'ubudiyah.

A Theology of Interreligious Relations

A Theology of Interreligious Relations

Fiqh of Diffable in Theo-Antro-Juridical Perspective: Examining the Divine, Humane and Constitutional Foundation For the Fulfillment of the Rights of Disabled Group

Since the past, stigma and various forms of discrimination have continued to haunt disabled groups. They become a group that is marginalized from society due to the limitations they experience. Diffable groups should be seen as part of a society that has different abilities. In Islamic doctrine, marginalization and discrimination against these disabled groups is an act that is blamed and prohibited because basically all humans have the same position before God and the only difference is the degree of holiness. Therefore, Islamic law through fiqh products must participate in legitimizing the fulfillment of rights for disabled groups from a religious perspective. This paper will examine the importance of the formulation of fiqh with disabilities as part of respecting human values ​​taught by Islam. Using the theo-anthro-juridical term, this paper will also describe the foundations in formulating the fiqh of persons with disabilities, including theological, humanist, and legal foundations.